The World's End

This is the latest entry in a series of silly, stylized, slapstick British comedies—including 2004's Shaun of the Dead and 2007's Hot Fuzz—directed by Edgar Wright and starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. In The World's End, five former high-school friends decide to reunite and complete an epic pub crawl that they initially attempted 20 years ago. Wearing the same trench coat and black Sisters of Mercy T-shirt, and driving the same car, middle-aged yet still immature man/child Gary King (Pegg) is the instigator. Gary recruits sensible, 16-years-sober corporate lawyer Andy (Frost), whose friendship he had jeopardized; pretentious real-estate agent Oliver (Martin Freeman); mild-mannered, married Peter (Eddie Marsan); and fun-loving, divorced architect Steven (Paddy Considine) to quaff a pint in all 12 pubs on the Golden Mile of Newton Haven, with the aim of finishing their marathon at the aptly named The World's End. But there are sinister, sci-fi complications afoot in their old hometown: the pubs are now identical—with fake ale/lagers on tap—and the residents have been replaced by alien robots. Have these five musketeers become the human race's last chance for survival? Aficionados of the earlier spoofs will likely find this apocalyptic British romp to be amusing, fast-paced fun—a kind of goofy riff on Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Edgar Wright and writer/costar Simon Pegg, a “Completing the Golden Mile” making-of featurette (48 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are a “U-Control” storyboard picture-in-picture viewing option, additional audio commentaries (one with Pegg and costars Nick Frost and Paddy Considine; the other with Wright and cinematographer Bill Pope), the production featurettes “Filling in the Blanks: Stunts & FX” (28 min.), “Edgar & Simon's Flip Chart” (13 min.), “Signs & Omens” (8 min.), “Three Flavors Cornetto Trilogy” (5 min.), “Pegg + Frost = Fried Gold” (4 min.), “Friends Reunited” (4 min.), and “Director at Work” with Wright (3 min.), as well as animatics (11 min.), outtakes (11 min.), stunt tapes (9 min.), a VFX break down (9 min.), rehearsal footage (7 min.), alternate edits (5 min.), “There's Only One Gary King” music video of osymyso's Inibri-8 Megamix (5 min.), hair and makeup tests (4 min.), “Bits & Pieces” extra footage (4 min.), a “TV Safe Version” edited clip (4 min.), a brief deleted scene, a trivia track option, five photo galleries, trailers, and bonus DVD, digital, and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a whopping Blu-ray extras package for a sure to be popular comedy.] (S. Granger)